Our friend, Gill Meller, has created this incredible showstopper of a Christmas Dinner. Using our 100% free-range, award-winning Bronze Turkey, this the perfect recipe to show off to friends and family around the holidays.
Gill Meller's Brined & Barbecued Whole Turkey
Ingredients
Method
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Put all the brine ingredients into a large stockpot, including the spices, herbs and lemon zest. Bring to a very gentle simmer over a medium heat, stirring regularly to stop the salt and sugar catching on the bottom of the pan. Simmer for a minute or two, then remove from the heat and allow to cool. Pour the brine into a big, deep plastic food box or bucket large enough to fit your turkey in. Chill the brine until ready to use it.
Remove the giblets from the turkey and gently lower it into the brine. It's important that the bird is submerged, so set a plate over the top with a weight on to keep it below the surface. Cover the tub or bucket and leave for 36-48 hours. It's important to keep the turkey cool while it's in the brine because it's unlikely to fit in the fridge. I'd recommend keeping it outside or somewhere else cool, and if you need to, add some ice to bring the temperature down to 5°C or below.
After the allotted time, lift the turkey out of the brine, rinse it carefully in fresh cold water and pat it dry. It's best to let it sit uncovered in the bottom of the fridge for 12 hours or overnight. This will help it dry off.
When you are ready to cook the turkey, light your barbecue. You'll want to use sustainably produced lump wood charcoal alongside a few small hardwood logs or a few handfuls of smoking woodchips. Allow the charcoal to burn black so that you have a good hot bed of glowing coals, you'll need plenty of the, so make sure that you've added lots of fuel. Add the little logs or woodchips. As the wood smoulders, it'll create a lovely aromatic smoke, which will flavour the bird beautifully as it cooks. Set an indirrect cooking plate over the fire or move all the hot coals and wood to the edges of the barbecue so the heat isn't coming from directly underneath the bird. Place the grill down, close the lid and adjust the air dampers to set your barbecues temperature. You're looking for an internal temperature of around 180°C (not dissimilar to your oven inside).
Place the chopped onions, celery, carrots and bashed garlic in to a large roasting tin and set the bird down over the top of all the veg. Place the herbs in the cavity of the bird. Pour in about 500ml of water (or cider). Rub the bird all over with the soft butter and then place the roasting tin on the grill of the barbecue and close the lid. Roast the turkey, basting it every 25-30 minutes with the buttery juices from the tin. You may need to top the liquid up once or twice if it dries up. The bird will take about 2 hours to cook, but it's crucial to take a temperature reading from the deepest part of the bird before you remove it. The thickest part of the breast as well as the thigh should have reached 65-72°C. Once the birds got to this all-important temperature, you can carefully lift it out and allow it to rest somewhere warm.
To make quick delicious gravy, lift the bird out of the tray to a large plate or platter. Set the tray of vegetables and roasting juices over a low heat. Skim off any excess fat but leave some in the pan. Sprinkle in 3 tablespoons of plain flour and stir well. Cook gently for about 2 minutes. Scrape at any dark sticky patches on the bottom of the tin. Add a small glass of red wine along with enough really tasty chicken or beef stock to give you a nice consistency. Bring the gravy to the simmer, stirring regularly until the gravy begins to thicken nicely. Pass the gravy, along with all the vegetables through a fine sieve into a clean saucepan, pressing all the flavour out of the veg with the back of the spoon or ladle as you go. Set the pan over a low heat and add 2 teaspoons of cider vinegar and 1 tablespoon of crab apple or red currant jelly. Season to taste with plenty of sea salt and pepper and stir well.
